Tales from PS 3
by augmentedfourth
Summary: Where the "P.S." stands for "Public School". A parody of Phantasy Star III, re-imagined in a present-day high school setting.  With all the love triangles and fighting and drama, it might as well be a teenage soap opera anyway.
1. The Battle Against Perfection

#1 – The Battle Against Perfection

Lena burst into the empty bathroom and locked herself in the first stall, where the tears continued streaming down her face. Even though she knew it would be like another knife through her heart, she flipped open her cell phone and re-read the text message from one of her friends.

"_rhys aksed maia to prom. sry."_

Life had been blissful for Lena until Maia had shown up at school. Not only did she have the magnetic mystique that came from being "the new girl", she was drop-dead gorgeous as well. When she strode into the cafeteria with her waist-length pale blue hair (and perfectly coordinating clothes), long legs, and curves to die for, the busy room suddenly went silent. Doves had actually circled around her, though it was later discovered that the presence of the white birds was due to a student's prank in the biology classroom.

No one knew where she was from or anything about her, but the boys all literally shoved each other out of the way to sit next to her in class, carry her tray at lunch, or escort her to the door at the end of the school day. As Lena had been dating Rhys for almost all of high school (which equaled "forever" in teenage terms), she thought she had nothing to worry about. She was wrong.

Rhys had been all too eager to join in the quest for Maia's affections. When Lena had suggested that perhaps he should pay more attention to his actual girlfriend, he had immediately broken up with her, claiming that she was "too controlling" and that he "needed to be free for senior year!". The pain of being unceremoniously dumped was bad enough, but it dulled in comparison to the realization that Rhys thought "freedom" meant "hooking up with the new hot chick". Despite his rather shoddy treatment of her, Lena had still held out hope for reconciliation, as most of her friends had frequently been on-again/off-again with their significant others, sometimes even within the course of one day.

The news of Rhys taking Maia to the senior prom had dashed her hopes forever. He was gone, never to return to her, and she was alone. As she continued to weep openly in the tiny bathroom stall, she tore off a length of toilet paper from the roll and used it to blow her nose.

Lena was trying to dry the tears from her face when she heard the door open. Someone walked into the bathroom and stood in front of the sinks. Lena peeked underneath the stall and saw a pair of light blue, high-heeled shoes. She only knew one person who wore shoes like that..."Fuck!" she mumbled under her breath.

The person outside had heard her. "Is someone there?"

Lena cursed again, but this time she managed to keep it inside her head. She tossed her dampened wad of paper into the toilet and flushed. Realizing she couldn't stay in there forever, she flung open the door to face her romantic rival.

Maia was leaning over the sinks towards the mirror, applying bright pink gloss to her full lips. Lena tried to ignore her and started washing her hands as far away from her as possible, but it was to no avail. "Hey," the azure-clad goddess called out. "You're Lena, right?"

Lena turned off the running water and realized she had to get past the taller girl to get to the paper towels. "Yeah, that's me," she sighed as she tried to squeeze past her to dry her hands.

Maia turned to face the petite Lena and due to the combination of the blue-haired woman's natural height and four-inch heels, Lena found herself exactly at eye-level with her enemy's impressive chest. _Life isn't fair_, Lena thought. She felt like a ten-year-old child in comparison, and as she put a hand up to brush some of her short brown hair out of her eyes, she was reminded that her recent disaster of a haircut only emphasized her boyish features. The inferiority complex she was already dealing with only increased in intensity.

"I don't think we've officially met yet. I'm Maia." Her voice was soft and pleasant, and Lena was sure that if she broke into song, she would sound like a choir of angels.

"I know who you are." Lena tilted her head back in an effort to establish eye contact. "Can you get these things out of my face?" she asked, gesturing to the perfectly rounded spheres dangling mockingly before her.

Maia obligingly took a step backwards. A small frown appeared on her pouty, fuchsia lips. "I'm sorry about what happened with Rhys," she said sincerely. "I didn't know you had been dating him."

"Everybody knew! We'd been together for years!"

The frown deepened. "I didn't know, no one told me. I'm really sorry your feelings got hurt, I feel terrible."

Lena was incredulous. "You're actually apologizing to me? Can you, like, not be so damn perfect all the time?"

Maia started nervously fidgeting with the hem of her tight blue dress, an easy task as it stopped a good six inches above her knee. "I don't want to make any enemies here. It's just so hard being at a new school, and I just wanted people to like me, and..."

Lena thought she saw the other girl's lower lip start to tremble. _Oh shit, now I've made the perfect princess cry_, she thought. _If this gets out, everyone will hate me_. "I don't dislike you," she offered aloud, trying to sound comforting. "I know I should be angry with Rhys, not you."

Maia pulled out a paper towel and gently dabbed at the corners of her eyes, somehow managing not to disturb any of her expertly-applied makeup. "You were with him for a really long time, huh?"

The brown-haired girl nodded. "I've known him for practically my whole life, we grew up together." She felt her own tears forming again, but she couldn't stop herself. "I really thought we were meant to be together." One drop fell, followed by another, and soon her face was soaking wet again. _Shut up, Lena, you're embarrassing yourself! Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!_ Her inner monologue lost the battle and she continued on with her tale of woe. "Ever since I was a little girl, I thought we'd go to the prom together, graduate together, go to college together...maybe even get married!" She wiped her nose with the back of her hand. "But I guess he never felt the same way..."

Maia was so overcome with sympathy, she reached out and pulled the sobbing girl to her in a warm embrace. Lena panicked for a moment at the thought of suffocating in the massive mounds of flesh, but she relaxed and accepted the hug. "Boys can be so dumb sometimes," Maia stated rather uneloquently. "I'm really sorry he did that to you. Now I don't even know if I want to go to the prom with him."

"Dnnsitatbcssommee."

"What?"

Lena managed to extract her face from the front of Maia's dress. "Don't say that because of me," she repeated. "You'll go with him and you'll have a good time. Don't worry about me, I'll be fine."

Maia cocked her head to the side and blinked her long lashes. "Are you sure?"

"Yes! Go!"

"Thanks, Lena." A small smile returned to the luscious lips. "Maybe we can be friends one day."

"We'll see."

Lena hated to admit it, but she did feel a little better after her bathroom chat with the lovely Maia. Her good mood only intensified when she found out that Rhys's father had grounded him just mere days away from the long-awaited dance. There had been a time when Lena would have gone to help Rhys sneak out of his basement room, but those days were gone and she rather enjoyed the thought of him festering in his anger alone down there. She was done with him. She was moving on.


	2. The Art of Seduction

#2 – The Art of Seduction

"Dude, she is so hot!"

"I don't care how hot she is, I'm not going anywhere near her."

Ayn and Nial had met in the library after school to work on a class project, but the schoolwork wasn't nearly as interesting as their surroundings. They had all but abandoned the project in favor of surreptitiously watching another classmate as she sat alone at a table on the other side of the room. As the library was poorly supervised, the brown-haired girl was able to focus intently on carving something into the table with a knife without interruption.

"I'm going to go talk to her," Ayn told his companion.

"I hope you come back alive." Nial had been Ayn's best friend for nearly his entire life; the two were so close, they were practically brothers. Normally, Ayn listened to his friend's advice, but today, it seemed as if his mind was already made up.

Ayn stood up and crossed the room to where the knife-wielding young woman sat. "Hey, Sari, what's up?"

The knife stopped moving as Sari looked up at him through her chocolate-colored bangs. She eyed him suspiciously for a moment before going back to what she had been doing without a response.

Ayn saw an open book on the table, most likely a cover for her destructive activities. He decided to try again. "What are you reading? Anything good?"

This time, Sari didn't even look up as she continued to ignore him. Defeated, Ayn made his way back to his own table where Nial was trying not to laugh.

"I hope you got that out of your system," Nial said with a slight chuckle.

Ayn shook his head. "I don't give up that easily. I'll win her over."

"Be careful, man. I bet she's like a praying mantis – once she's done with you, she'll rip your fucking head off."

"Hey, that actually doesn't sound like the worst way to die."

The following day, Ayn sat down next to Sari in the science lab. She took the time to glare at him before moving to a different seat. A similar effort in the cafeteria produced the same results, and an attempt to start a conversation with her at her locker after school was punctuated by an angry, metallic slam.

"Give it up," Nial advised. "She's never going to have anything to do with you and you're probably better off."

Ayn was still interested in a challenge. "I'm not done yet. I'll think of something."

Though Nial thought his friend was being foolish, he agreed to help him brainstorm for ways to woo the object of his desire. Their task proved to be difficult, though – upon careful thought, neither seemed to know anything about Sari. Her friends, her interests, her goals and dreams...everything was a mystery to the two boys.

Ayn was undeterred. "I'll get to know her. Maybe she just doesn't want to talk to me at school."

"So what's your plan?"

He thought for a moment. "I'll go see if she's home after dinner," he decided.

Nial's eyes grew wide. "She lives all the way over on Landen Street, that's in a completely different neighborhood!"

"It's not that far of a walk, I don't mind. She can't ignore me if I'm serenading her from her front lawn."

"You can't sing for shit," Nial reminded him.

"Oh. Right." Nothing seemed to faze the determined Ayn. "I'll figure something out."

As Ayn made his way over to Sari's house in the early evening, he stopped into a small store along the way for inspiration. As he perused a display of flowers, nothing seemed suitable, as he assumed that Sari would turn up her nose at anything pink or overly "girly". A small container at the end caught his eye and he bent down to examine its contents more carefully. It was filled with bright orange-yellow roses, a color he had never seen on that type of bloom before. Satisfied by the striking flowers, he pulled a single one from the bunch and continued on his way.

When Ayn arrived at Sari's, he took a deep breath before ringing the doorbell. As she opened the door to find the stupidly grinning young man clutching a topaz-colored rose on her doorstep, she rolled her eyes and made a disgusted noise. "What do you want?" she said, exasperated.

"I just want to talk to you," he pleaded.

"Well, I don't want to talk to you," she said, but she didn't close the door.

"Why not?"

"Because you're _annoying_. Just leave me alone."

"I only want to get to know you better!"

"You are pathetic." She folded her arms across her chest. "Is that enough conversation for you yet? Can you leave now?"

"If you really want me to leave, I'll go. But I'm warning you, I can be persistent!" He offered her the jewel-toned flower. "I brought you something."

Sari held the rose as if it were a dead rat. "Uh...thanks. I guess."

"I'll see you tomorrow in school!" Ayn said, still cheery.

"Yup." The door finally closed, but it came later than he had expected. He considered it a victory.

"I got her to talk to me!" Ayn told Nial the following day.

"Really? What did she say?"

Ayn blushed slightly and looked down at the ground. "That I was annoying and pathetic. But at least it was something!"

Nial shook his head. "I think there's something wrong with you. She clearly hates you."

Ayn refused to believe his friend. "She's coming around. I bet she'll go out with me soon."

"Be careful. You may want to wear body armor if that happens."

Ayn had learned not to approach Sari in school, so he made his way back to her house later in the day. She didn't look any less irritated when she opened the door to him, but like the previous day, she didn't immediately send him away. "You're here _again_?" she spat out.

"I want to show you how devoted to you I can be!"

"You're just bothering me and embarrassing yourself."

"That's because you won't give me a chance. Come on, what's wrong with me?" he asked her, trying to look sympathetic.

She sighed and looked him up and down. "You have a stupid haircut. You have a whiny voice. You suck at volleyball in gym class. And, above all, you won't leave me the hell alone!"

Ayn hadn't expected her to answer in such specific detail and he had to admit it stung a little; still, he pressed on. "Those things could become endearing over time," he suggested.

"I doubt it," she said and the door slammed again.

Ayn returned for a third consecutive day to try to charm his beloved brunette. "Just give me a chance," he practically begged. "One date, that's all I ask."

Sari continued to glare at him, no change in her harsh expression. "No."

"Please." He wasn't giving up. "One tiny little date. It doesn't even have to be a long date."

"No."

"One quick little dinner? Not even a movie afterward?"

She stayed silent for a moment as if she were actually seriously considering his proposition. "Let me think about it. I'll give you my answer tomorrow at lunch."

He beamed at her. "Sounds good to me! I'll see you then!"

Ayn's palms were sweaty and his heart was racing all morning. Nial tried to offer his support, though he wasn't terribly optimistic. "Calm down, the worst she can do is say no," he said. "Or I guess she could stab you with her knife."

"I hope she doesn't."

Lunchtime finally came around and Ayn carefully approached Sari where she was eating by herself. "Hi, Sari," he greeted her, trying to sound casual.

"Hello," she said flatly.

He didn't bother making small talk. "So...can I take you to dinner tonight?"

She stood up and stood directly in front of him. Ayn hadn't realized before now that she was slightly taller than him, but he didn't back down. Sari put a hand on either side of his face as she stared into his eyes, and for a brief moment, Ayn thought she was going to kiss him.

His happiness didn't last long, though, as he felt her knee come in contact with his groin. Nearly blinded by the pain, he crumpled to the ground and curled up into a little ball. "If you _ever_ come to my house again, I'm going to call the police!" she yelled, loud enough for the people around her to hear. "Now leave me alone, you psychotic bastard!" She gave him a swift kick to his right kidney just for good measure.

Nial stepped in to help drag his friend away as Sari surrendered herself to the school security guards, figuring that she could handle a few more detentions. Ayn managed to pull himself into a chair as Nial tried to cheer him up. "At least she didn't stab you," he said helpfully.

Ayn could only groan as he waited for the pain to subside. The battle was over, he was giving up. It had been a painful lesson, but he had finally learned to accept "no" for an answer.


	3. The Value of Secrecy

#3 – The Value of Secrecy

Nial couldn't remain worried about Ayn for too long, as he had his own social life to think about. He was gathering his belongings from his locker at the end of the day when he heard a noise behind him. Turning around, he came face to bloody face with another one of his friends.

"Ryan! What the hell happened to you?"

The dark-haired boy leaned his bruised cheek against the cool metal of the locker door and sighed. "It's Lune again. This time he hit me right in the face during dodgeball."

"Ouch."

"At least he didn't put my head in the locker room toilet like he did last week. That sucked."

Nial had to agree. Leaning in a little closer, he inspected his friend's face. "Yeah, you're definitely going to have quite the shiner for a while."

"Shit. My mom's going to freak out when I get home, she'll think I was in a fistfight."

Wanting to be of some assistance to the worried Ryan, Nial continued digging around in his locker. "Here, take my sunglasses. That should cover it up." Ryan donned the dark glasses and sure enough, most of his battle wounds were hidden, save for one scratch on his cheek. Satisfied with his good deed, Nial partially changed the subject. "I guess my news is kind of relevant now. Guess who made sure to sit next to me in math class today?"

"Who?"

Nial smiled slyly. "Alair."

"_Alair_?" Even behind the sunglasses, Nial could tell that Ryan's eyes had grown wide. He looked around to make sure the hallway was empty before speaking again. "That's Lune's sister, are you crazy?"

"I know, I know...but she's cute, and I think she was looking at me throughout class."

Ryan shook his head frantically. "He'd kill you. Not put your head in a dirty toilet bowl, but actually kill you. And string your dead body up on the flagpole to serve as a warning to others."

Nial laughed. "Come on, I think that's a little extreme. Besides, I'm not afraid of Lune." He looked at Ryan's face. "...Not much, anyway," he added on.

"Whatever. It's your funeral."

"Thanks for your concern." Nial put the last of his books into his backpack and closed his locker. "I have to get going. Good luck with your mom!"

The friends parted ways and Nial headed for the stairwell at the end of the hallway. When he reached the bottom of the stairs, he ran right into Alair, who, luckily, was unaccompanied. She tucked a piece of her lime-green hair behind her ear and smiled sweetly at him.

"Hi, Nial."

"Hey."

"I was hoping I'd run into you."

Nial felt himself blush slightly. "Oh?"

"Did you understand the directions for the math homework tonight? I was feeling a little lost in class."

He couldn't deny he was slightly disappointed by her reason for seeking him out. "I think so. Do you need help?"

"I might, but not now. My brother will come looking for me if I don't go home right away." She reached into the bag slung over her shoulder and pulled out a pen and a little notebook. "Here's my number," she said, writing it down. "Text me later and maybe we can work something out." She handed him the piece of paper and then checked her watch. "I have to go now, but maybe I'll talk to you later!" Before Nial could respond, she was out the door.

Later that evening, Nial sat in his bedroom with his phone in one hand and her number in the other. His math notebook was nearby somewhere, though he wasn't particularly interested in it. After nervously fidgeting for a few minutes (or thirty), he finally entered the number in his phone and sent Alair a quick message.

"_hey its nial u need help w math?_"

He tried to get some homework done, but was distracted by waiting for the phone to buzz with a reply. Before long, he got his wish.

"_i got it thnx_"

Nial was disappointed for the second time in one day, but he didn't have enough time to wallow in his pity before the phone buzzed again.

"_u lookd cute 2day ;)_"

He nearly started hyperventilating at Alair's second message and was glad no one was around to see. The math homework was completely abandoned as he tried to formulate a worthy response. His hands were so moist with sweat, his thumbs nearly slipped off the small keys as he entered his reply.

"_u 2. i likd ur headband :)_"

After he put the phone down, Nial stared intently at it, mentally willing it to vibrate one more time. It didn't disappoint him, as it lit up only moments later. He took a deep breath as he opened it to see what else Alair had to say.

"_meet me 2mro b4 school by stairs?_"

He smiled and felt the flush return to his cheeks as he read Alair's request to meet in the morning. It didn't take him more than three seconds to respond.

"_kk :)_"

Nial barely got any sleep due to his eager anticipation of their morning meeting. He got dressed at a record speed and left his house without eating any breakfast. As he slipped into the quiet building, he thought he might have been too early, but a small hand reached out and pulled him beneath the staircase.

"Hi," Alair greeted him, smiling.

"Hi."

She looked around to make sure they were really alone. "I'm sorry about this, but we have to be careful. My brother forbids me dating anyone, if he ever found out..."

Nial hadn't been aware that their secret rendezvous constituted a date, but he couldn't complain about the new label. "It's okay, I'm just glad you wanted to see me."

Her smile widened. "I'm glad you weren't too afraid to come."

The pair gazed wordlessly into each other's eyes until they heard the footsteps of their fellow students arriving at school. "Meet me here tomorrow," she whispered. "I'll be here at the same time."

When Nial met her the following morning, Alair wasted no time in pulling his head down to hers and pressing her lips against his. A tiny part of him thought that things were moving rather quickly, as he didn't really know her all that well, but that voice was quickly silenced by the hands that were roaming across his chest, around to his back, and beyond. He was equally eager to run his hands through her soft green hair and explore the body that was pressing up against his own.

Over time, the cunning duo was able to find a variety of hiding places throughout the school building. A storage closet, the darkroom in the photography lab, the lighting booth in the auditorium, and other little-known spots allowed them build their relationship away from prying eyes. Nial was feeling pretty good about himself as he left the equipment room adjacent to the gymnasium one day, until someone grabbed him and threw him up against a wall of lockers.

"You've been messing around with my sister!" Lune growled as he pinned Nial to the wall by his throat. As it wasn't really a question, Nial chose not to respond. "Did you really think I wouldn't find out? I have friends all over this building who tell me what's going on!"

Nial managed to wrestle free from Lune's grasp and tried to pull himself up to his full height before confronting the angry bully, though Lune still had a good six inches on him. "Alair can do whatever she wants!" he yelled. "She's the one who started talking to me, not the other way around!"

A small crowd had started to gather in the hallway around the boys. Unfortunately, Nial knew that Lune didn't mind having an audience when dishing out his punishments. He wondered if Lune was going to knock him out right there, but the angry young man had other plans.

"Today, after school," Lune began, breathing heavily. "We'll settle this out near the basketball court."

"Fine with me." Nial tried to sound confident as he stared up at the boy who was towering over him.

Alair managed to push her way through the circle of people and stared in horror at what was going on. "Stop this! Both of you!" She stood directly next to Lune and looked up at him defiantly. "This is crazy! He hasn't done anything to you!"

"Quiet, Alair!" There was no extinguishing Lune's rage. "He's not good enough for you!"

"You say that about everyone!" she complained. "I _like_ him, that should be good enough for _you_."

Lune ignored her and turned his attention back to Nial. "You'd better show up today. If not, things will be much worse for you tomorrow," he said, cracking his knuckles.

"All right, kids, let's get to class." The booming voice of Wren, the head security guard, penetrated the crowd. He stopped where the two boys stood and looked them over. "Is there a problem here?" Both of them shook their heads and mumbled an incomprehensible response. "Good. Move along, don't be late for class." The tall, bulky guard shooed them in separate directions, but they still managed to get in one last angry glare apiece.

"I told you he would kill you," Ryan reminded his friend.

"He's not going to kill me."

"Okay, then he's just going to beat the shit out of you. I hope I can recognize your face tomorrow."

"You're not really helping, you know," Nial sighed. "Besides, what makes you so sure I'm going to lose?"

"Nobody's ever won a fight against Lune. You don't have a chance."

"Thanks."

"I'm just being honest." Though he may not have been doing a very good job of showing it, Ryan was concerned for the lovestruck Nial. "You don't have to fight him. You can just go home right after school today."

Nial shook his head. "I'm going to have to face him eventually. Besides, I doubt Alair would think very highly of me if I decided she wasn't worth fighting for."

"If you say so. Do you want me to come along for moral support?"

"Sure. I may need someone to pick up my bloody pieces afterward, anyway." Nial tried to laugh, but it didn't quite come out.

The rest of the afternoon seemed to fly by and before he knew it, the final bell rang. Nial trudged out to the basketball court, where a number of people had already gathered. Lune was standing in the center of the group without a hint of nervousness displayed on his face.

"So you decided to face me after all, worm. Now my revenge is at hand!"

Alair was standing behind her brother. "Nial, you don't have to do this!" she called out to him.

"Yes, I do. I want you to be my girlfriend and I want the whole school to know!"

While Alair beamed silently and a murmur rippled through the crowd, Lune looked like he was about to burst half the blood vessels in his face. "You're going to regret this!" he screamed. Without warning, Lune pulled out a boomerang and hurled it directly at Nial.

"Ow!" he exclaimed as the boomerang hit him in the shoulder. Somehow, the wooden blade returned to the hand of its owner after striking its target. "What the fuck? Is this a joke?" he asked no one in particular. "Who the hell throws a boomerang?"

He didn't have time to wait for a response as the weapon struck him again, this time in the side of his head. He reached his hand up to his temple and felt blood. If he was going to win, he needed to do something to stop Lune's attacks, but he was fresh out of ideas.

"Nial!" Ryan suddenly appeared behind him. "Here, take this!" He presented Nial with a baseball bat he had found deserted in a nearby field.

As he had no better option, Nial took the bat into his hands. Facing Lune again, he brandished the bat like a sword, waiting for his opponent's next move. Lune threw his boomerang again, but this time, Nial was able to use his own weapon to prevent it from reaching its target. The momentum of the bat sent the boomerang off its intended course and Lune was left empty-handed.

Nial warily stepped closer to Lune, still holding the bat out in front of him. The giant green-haired boy seemed unaffected by the loss of his weapon and the expression on his face seemed to be similar to that of an owl ready to pounce on a field mouse. Lune moved to grab the bat away from his foe, but Nial managed to dodge him. The evasive movement knocked him off balance, though, and he felt Lune's fist connect with his jawbone.

He was almost ready to give up when he looked up and saw Alair staring right at him. Though no words were exchanged, he somehow knew she was silently urging him to continue fighting. Much like the rest of the school, she was tired of her brother's violent, domineering ways.

Nial looked away to see Lune come at him again. This time, he was ready and ducked in time. Having missed his mark, Lune was now caught flat-footed and Nial was ready to take advantage. Before Lune could turn around fully, Nial swung the bat and made contact with the side of his abdomen.

Lune staggered and Nial struck him again. The aggressor went down and rolled on to his back. Before he could get up, Nial planted his foot on the fallen boy's chest in a victory pose, but still held the bat ready just in case Lune tried to make a move. There was a moment of silence from the spectators before most of them started cheering.

Nial's triumph was short-lived, however, as Wren and another guard, Siren, came running towards them. Both Nial and Lune were hauled off to Principal Rulakir's office and suspended from school for the next five days (and Nial was grounded by his parents for far longer than that). Once Nial regained his freedom, though, Alair was waiting for him, ready to publicly declare their love for each other.

"Will you go out with me?" Nial asked her, a big grin on his face.

"I was starting to think you'd never ask!" Alair laughed.

Having been defeated by Nial, Lune wasn't the bully he once was. Seeing his sister so happy caused him to abandon his violent ways and he stopped tormenting his fellow students. His reign of terror had been ended and peace settled over the school.


	4. The Gift of Fear

#4 – The Gift of Fear

Ayn was still recovering from his encounter with Sari, as she had managed to wound both his ego and his genitals. The whole experience had rather soured him on the idea of dating, and he had decided to swear off women for a while. Alas, there was someone waiting to destroy his plans.

"Hi, Ayn!" he heard someone call behind him as he was walking into history class one day.

He turned around and was greeted by a petite, bubbly girl with long emerald-green hair. "Oh! Hi, Thea!"

Thea giggled as she entered the room with him. "Do you mind if I sit next to you today? I can't really see the board from my old seat."

"Sure, go ahead."

They took their seats near the center of the room and got out their notebooks in preparation for the upcoming lecture. Once class started, Ayn found himself being distracted by the gorgeous girl next to him, despite his best intentions. He watched her absentmindedly twirl her hair around one finger while she took notes with a flowery purple pen for a few moments before forcing himself to pay attention to his own notebook.

He was distracted again by the sound of tearing paper. Ayn turned his head and watched as Thea folded up a sheet from her notebook into a small square. She carefully dropped it onto the floor and gently kicked it across the aisle so it landed at Ayn's feet. He picked it up and carefully unfolded it.

"_Are you going to the dance on Friday?_" was written in dark purple elaborate cursive. He looked at her, but she was staring straight ahead at the chalkboard.

"_I don't know. Maybe_," he wrote underneath. Before he passed the note back, he glanced up at the teacher, Ms. Miun. The elderly redhead was half blind and was content to obliviously blather the same things over and over to her uncaring students, so Ayn was fairly certain he would avoid detection. He leaned over and managed to successfully toss the note onto Thea's desk.

He watched her frown slightly when reading his response, but her pen flowed across the paper in enticing spirals and curlicues. The folded note flew back across the aisle, landing squarely in the middle of Ayn's desk and he opened it to read the latest line in their written conversation.

"_You should go, it'll be fun!_" Ayn looked up again and saw that Thea was looking right at him this time. There was a small smile on her pouty lips and an alluring sparkle in her green eyes. He let his gaze drift down and the way her low-cut white dress clung to her figure, followed by the delicate curve of her crossed legs was enough to make him nearly forget about his promise to himself.

Unlike Sari, though, Thea actually seemed to be interested in Ayn. He pushed aside the painful memories and approached the green-haired girl after class. "So what's this about a dance?" he asked her, trying to sound casual.

"Everybody's going to be there! It's going to be great!" She tilted her head to the side and looked up at him expectantly.

Even though he couldn't imagine the perky Thea hurting anyone, he moved his notebook in front of his most vulnerable area just in case. "If you'd like, I could give you a ride," he suggested, still trying to keep the eagerness out of his voice.

Thea giggled. "I'd love to go with you! Pick me up at 6:30, I'll text you my address!" She gave him a flirty little wave before heading towards her next class.

_That was too easy_, Ayn thought. He kept waiting for something to go wrong, but Thea was friendly towards him for the rest of the week and even expressed her anticipation about the dance several times. Friday rolled around and everything was going well.

Ayn couldn't decide what to wear to the dance, but he eventually settled on a button-down shirt and khaki pants, the standard uniform for teenage boys attending a semi-formal occasion. Before he left his house, he shoved a tie into his pocket just in case. Rushing down the stairs, he went outside and got in his rusty old Ford Escapipe. He was gradually saving up for a flashy new Telepipe, but the Escapipe generally got him where he needed to go. Most of the time.

He pulled up in front of Thea's house and walked up to her front door. Before he could even ring the bell, the door opened and he was greeted by the beaming girl. Ayn barely noticed her, though, as he was distracted by the intimidating man standing behind her.

He had long, straggly hair the same color as Thea's, but that was where the similarities ended. His right eye was covered by an ominous patch that lay against his weathered skin, nearly meeting his long mustache. The eye that was still visible glared intently at the young man standing on his doorstep.

"Yay! You're here! Let's go!" The excitable Thea started to leave, but the older man cleared his throat audibly. "Oh, right. Ayn, this is my father, Lyle," she introduced. "Daddy, this is Ayn."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Ayn said nervously, extending his hand. Lyle merely looked at it and grunted. Ayn was starting to sweat underneath his freshly-ironed shirt, but luckily, Thea couldn't wait to leave.

"I won't be home too late, I promise." She stood on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek before racing out the door. "Bye, Daddy!" she called.

Ayn turned to follow her, but was thwarted by a hand clamping down on his shoulder. "I can make you disappear," Lyle said in a low voice. "Just keep that in mind."

"Y...yes, sir." Ayn tugged at the collar of his shirt. "May I leave now?"

Lyle released his hold on him, but watched him walk down to the old car. Ayn didn't turn around, but he knew that if he did, he would see the glowing green eye following him. Thea, however, seemed blissfully unaffected by events that had already transpired and had already let herself into the passenger seat.

The dance was indeed as fun as Thea had predicted, though it was fairly uneventful. Ayn had especially enjoyed dancing to the slower songs, as his date was not shy about pulling him close and resting her head on his chest. The event had to come to a close, however, and before they knew it, they were back in the car, heading home.

Ayn parked at the bottom of the driveway and debated whether or not to turn the car off. His mouth felt dry and his hands felt clammy as he suddenly found it very difficult to make eye contact with the beautiful girl sitting less than a foot away from him. "I had a really good time tonight," she truthfully told him.

"Me too." He tried to swallow. "We should go out again sometime," he managed to croak out.

Even in dark, he could see Thea's radiant smile. "I like that you're thinking ahead, but tonight's not over yet," she said in a provocative tone he hadn't known she was capable of. She slid across the front seat of the car until she was directly next to him, the line of her body perfectly aligning with his.

Normally, Ayn's pulse would have been racing with excitement, but he had some concerns. "It's getting late, isn't your father -"

"Shh," she interrupted him, putting a long, delicate finger to his lips. "Don't worry about him, he's probably sleeping by now." She moved her hand to the side and gently rested it at the base of his neck. "This is the part where you're supposed to kiss me goodnight," she whispered.

Ayn tried to push his worries out of his head and obliged her request. Her mouth was soft and moist against his own and he detected a taste of cherry lip gloss. As her lips parted, he felt her tongue slip forward to engage him in a playful game of exploration. Ayn had a bit of an awkward moment when he realized that his hands were just laying lifeless in his lap, but after some quick deliberations, he decided to place his left hand on her right shoulder.

Thea had other ideas, however. Without breaking the kiss, she raised her own hand to Ayn's and guided it down a few inches. Ayn froze for a split second as he realized what, exactly, he was touching, but the feeling of Thea both on top of his hand and below was too much to ignore for long.

His head was spinning, his hands were moving to uncharted territories, and his pants seemed as if they were shrinking, but his full enjoyment of the moment was disrupted by the thought of Lyle appearing outside the car at any moment. As much as it nearly killed him to do so, he pulled away from Thea and quickly looked around. His gaze wandered to the mostly dark house – had that light been on when they arrived?

"What's the matter?" the emerald-haired girl asked, looking confused. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No! Oh god, no. Of course not. I just thought I heard something outside." Ayn started to kiss her again, but the idea of the angry green eye watching their every move continued to haunt him.

Thea laced her fingers around the back of his neck, but then one of her hands started to trace a line down his chest. As she moved dangerously lower, he had visions of the foreboding mustachioed man appearing at the windows of the car and he pulled away yet again. "I...I'm sorry," he stammered. "I just don't want us to get caught."

She looked around, still slightly confused. "There's no one here," she pointed out.

"I know, but your father's expecting you to come home any minute, what if he sees us?"

Thea frowned. "I guess if you want me to leave..."

Ayn groaned and rubbed his eyes with the heels of his hands. "I don't want you to leave. Believe me, I would like nothing more than to stay out here with you all night. I just feel weird doing so the end of your father's driveway."

"I understand." She sighed and looked disappointed for a moment. "I guess I should go inside now." When Ayn didn't answer, she kissed him on the cheek. "I still had a good time tonight."

"Me too," he said. "I'll call you tomorrow." He waited until she was out of the car and inside her house before he started banging his head against the steering wheel.

True to his word, Ayn called Thea the following day, a rare occurrence for a teenage boy. "I'm sorry about last night," he apologized again. "Your father just freaked me out a little."

Thea considered this information. "I guess I can see that." She giggled into the phone. "He's really not that bad, I'm sure he'll like you once he gets to know you."

"I hope so."

"Hey, I have an idea! Why don't you come over here for dinner tonight? You can see for yourself."

The image of the fiery green eye that was permanently etched into Ayn's mind reappeared, but Thea sounded so excited, he hated to turn her down. "Uh...sure," he accepted with a slight hesitation.

She didn't seem to notice. "Great! Why don't you come over around 5:30? I'll make sure to have dinner ready for then!"

Ayn didn't really feel any less nervous when he hung up the phone, but he was willing to try to make a good impression on Lyle for Thea's sake. When the time came, he drove the battered Escapipe over to their house and waited to be let inside. The perky young woman led him inside and sat him down at the table across from her father.

"Dinner's just about ready, I just need to take care of a few things!" she chirped. While he waited for Thea to finish cooking, Ayn felt himself start to sweat beneath Lyle's singular glare. He had greeted the older man upon entering the house, but had received little more than a grunt in return.

Thea set the food down on the table and dished it onto their plates. Once she sat down, she was more than happy to babble away obliviously about school, the dance, her cheerleading squad, and anything else that came to mind. Ayn tried to ask a few questions in between bites, but throughout the meal, he felt the hateful green eye burning a hole in him.

"Thank you for having me over for dinner," Ayn finally managed to choke out in Lyle's direction once they were finished. He received an obligatory nod for his troubles. Thea, as always, remained unaware of the tension in the room and when she was done clearing the dishes, she stood next to her father's chair.

"Can we go downstairs and watch a movie?" she asked. The eyebrow that was not hidden by the tattered patch raised slightly. "Please, Daddy? It's not that late and it's not a school night and all my homework's done and..."

"Fine," Lyle conceded, never taking his eye off of the shivering young man in front of him.

Thea didn't wait for him to elaborate; she grabbed Ayn's hand and practically dragged him out of his chair. "Thank you, Daddy!" she called out over her shoulder as she led her date to the stairs. Ayn said nothing, though he still felt the menacing eye upon him even when his back was turned.

The basement was comfortably furnished and was decorated with family portraits. As Thea set up the DVD player, Ayn glanced around at the various images of her at different ages, all with the same big eyes and lovely smile. In most of the pictures, though, her father stood behind her, his stern expression a stark contrast to that of his daughter's.

Thea gestured for Ayn to take a seat on the couch as she selected a movie. Once she made her decision, she curled up right next to him and leaned her head on his shoulder. Ayn slid an arm around her and tried to concentrate on the movie, but he was distracted by the idea of Lyle coming downstairs to check up on them and seeing the two of them sitting so close.

Despite his best efforts, he never could quite relax completely during the ninety-minute movie. At its conclusion, Thea turned the television off and looked up at him. "What would you like to do now?" she asked coyly.

Ayn swallowed and debated how honest to be. He must have taken too long to respond, though, for Thea answered her own question by twisting her body around and pressing her lips against his. He wrapped his arms around her waist and held her close to him, enjoying the feeling of her body pressed up against his chest.

When Thea slipped her hands underneath his shirt and ran them against his bare skin, he trembled as he all but forgot where he was. The dizzy feeling set in again as he felt her mouth covering his own, her fingers along his back, his own hands buried deep in her jewel-toned tresses. She guided his body up slightly from its semi-reclined position and in one swift motion, slid her leg to the other side of his lap so she was straddling him.

Ayn finally opened his eyes to take in the sight of the beautiful girl sitting directly on top of him. Beyond Thea's enamored gaze, though, he could see dozens of clones of the fierce green eye watching his every move from the picture frames. He quickly shut his eyes again, but it was difficult to shake off the frightening image.

He tried to concentrate on Thea's actions, but a noise from the other side of the room startled him. He sprung up from the sofa, sending her tumbling to the carpet with a surprised yelp, and looked around. "What was that?" he whispered frantically.

"I don't know, it was probably the cat or something," she answered from the floor. "Why are you so jumpy all of a sudden?"

Hers weren't the only eyes he felt upon him, waiting for an answer. Ayn tried to focus on the pair closest to him and sat back down. "Sorry," he said and tried to think of a suitable explanation. Thea climbed back up next to him and waited. He chose not to elaborate and kissed her again.

Another strange sound, this time from almost above them, caused Ayn to push her away for a second time. Before she could respond, Lyle appeared on the staircase, holding a large bowl. "I thought you might want some popcorn to go with your movie," he said dryly.

Ayn looked at the silent TV, Thea's messy hair, and the terrifying glares surrounding him from all sides of the room and his instincts kicked in. _Run away!_ was the only thought going through his mind. He stood up quickly and tried to speak coherently, but the words tried to come out all at once. "Oh, wow, look at the time, I really should be getting home, my parents will be expecting me, and I have some homework to finish and some chores to complete and it's so late and I really _really_ need to get home and..." He had to stop to breathe. "Thanks again for dinner. Thea, I'll call you soon."

Ayn sprinted up the stairs past Lyle, burst out the front door, raced down to the Escapipe, and flew home in the space of approximately ten seconds. Upon returning to his bedroom, he was finally able to catch his breath. Knowing that he most likely needed to smooth things over with Thea, he picked up his cell phone and dialed her number.

"Hi Thea, I'm sorry I left in such a rush." He didn't give her a chance to say anything. "Look, I really like you, and I have a great time whenever I'm with you. I really want to keep dating you...but I just can't do it at your father's house. We can go anywhere else in the world you'd like...just not there."

Thea sighed and contemplated the situation. "I think you're overreacting, but I guess we can go somewhere else next time. Besides, I really think he likes you! He's never brought anyone else popcorn before!"


	5. The Mystery of Genetics

#5 - The Mystery of Genetics

Two boys sat atop the low wall that circled the perimeter of their school's property. Adan had a notebook open in front of him, trying to get in some last minute studying, while Crys furtively smoked a cigarette and watched his classmates arrive at school. Busses, cars, and bicycles were all used to get the students there in a timely fashion, though some unfortunate students were forced to walk.

Crys nudged his friend as a large silver SUV, practically the size of a small spaceship, pulled up to the sidewalk. Adan looked up just in time to see two girls exit from the backseat. The first was dressed in a skin-tight, low-cut purple shirt and black leather pants, and her stick-straight hair severely framed the fierce expression on her face. The second was taller and wore a long, pale blue dress that cascaded down to her ankles and her hair was curled in soft, flowing waves. Both girls had pale skin and fluorescent green tresses, but that was where the similarities ended.

"I can't believe they're sisters," Adan remarked, shaking his head.

"I know, and they're both named 'Kara'," Crys answered. "That shit's kinda weird."

"Weird or not, she's still hot!"

"Which one?"

Adan paused to consider the question carefully. "Both of them, I guess."

Crys watched as the sisters walked past them and entered the building. "I've always had a thing for tall girls," he sighed.

"Those leather pants are pretty damn sexy..." Adan trailed off. Once the girls disappeared from their blatant ogling, he turned to face his sandy-haired friend. "We should ask them out," he suggested.

Crys raised an eyebrow and flicked his cigarette. "Together? That's a little - "

"No, not together," Adan cut him off. "I just meant I'll do it if you do it."

Crys snorted. "Man, you really need to grow a pair." He finished the last of his cigarette and put it out on the bricks beside him. "But yeah, I'm not doing anything this weekend, why not?"

"Alright!" The previously excited Adan suddenly looked nervous. "What if they say no?"

"How could they?" Crys laughed confidently. "There's no reason not to go out with us."

"Right." Adan hopped down off the wall. "I should see Kara before lunch, I'll try to talk to her then."

"And I'll see the other Kara in our math class."

"So we have a plan. Let's go!" The two friends fist-bumped each other before reporting to their respective homerooms.

As expected, Adan caught up with Kara by her locker before heading into the cafeteria. "Hey, Kara," he greeted her, trying to be suave as he leaned against the wall next to her.

Her dark eyes looked him over. "Adan," she tersely acknowledged.

Adan tried to maintain the same level of confidence that came so easily to his friend. "I, uh, was wondering if you had any plans for this weekend."

She slammed her locker shut and stared at him. Adan tried not to squirm beneath her unrelenting gaze as he remembered that after last week's battle between Lune and Nial, he'd heard that Kara had deemed Lune "too weak to fight" and was gearing up to take his place as someone to be feared. Though the rumors he'd heard said that so far she'd only terrorized some of the freshmen, Adan gulped as he wondered if this had been a good idea.

"What did you have in mind?" she finally answered.

Adan relaxed, but only slightly. "Well, there's this new movie out, and - "

She snorted, interrupting him, and folded her arms across her chest. "Movies are boring," she scoffed.

"We could do something else..."

Kara continued to eye him suspiciously until a tiny smirk appeared upon her lips. "Tell you what – I'll pick you up on Saturday night and I'll find something for us to do."

Adan wasn't sure whether to be excited or scared. He opted to display the former. "Sounds good to me!"

He thought he detected a slight eye roll, but she still managed a small smile. "See you then!"

On the opposite end of the building, Crys slipped into a seat next to Kara before their math class started. "Hey there," he greeted her with a devilishly handsome smile.

"Hello, Crys. How are you?"

"Better since I got here." He cautiously slid his chair a little closer to hers. "Anything exciting going on this weekend?"

"No, I don't think so."

"How about I take you out to dinner Saturday night?"

A flush of color appeared on the pretty girl's cheeks. "That sounds very nice," she said softly.

"Great! I'll pick you up at 6:00!"

"Okay." She smiled shyly at him.

"How did it go?" Adan asked his friend at the end of the day.

"Good, we're all set for Saturday."

"Me too!"

"I'm taking Kara to that new pizza place down the road, what are you doing?"

Adan paused. "I don't know," he admitted.

"What do you mean, you don't know?"

"I suggested a movie, she shot me down. But she said she'd plan something for us that night."

Crys considered this. "I guess that's sort of cool. Have fun with that."

Saturday rolled around and Adan woke up some time in the early afternoon, giving him just enough time to prepare for his date. When he stumbled into the bathroom and caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror, he was not pleased with what he saw. To his dismay, a large, bright red pimple had appeared overnight right in the middle of his forehead.

Adan leaned closer to the mirror and poked at it, cursing under his breath. Annoyed, he flung the door open and hollered for his sister. "Gwyn!"

In a few moments, his twin appeared in the doorway, unhappy to be disturbed from whatever it was she had been doing. "What do you want?" she snapped.

He turned to face her and pointed to the unsightly blemish. "What do I do about this?"

Gwyn looked at his forehead and burst out laughing. "Wow, that's a big one!" she managed to get out between giggles.

"It's not funny!" Adan was not amused. "Come on, help me out!"

"Why should I help you?"

"Because I'm your brother and it's the right thing to do?"

She rolled her eyes at him. "I can pop it for you, if you'd like," she said with an evil grin.

"No! I don't want it to scar! You must have something to cover it up with."

"What, like a band-aid? That'll look real good."

"No...you know what I mean..."

Gwyn started laughing again. "Are you really asking to borrow my makeup?"

"If you tell anyone about this, I will kill you."

She continued to chuckle. "Shower first, then I guess I'll help you out."

Almost an hour later, Adan trudged into his sister's bedroom. "Sit," she instructed him, pointing to her desk chair.

Adan plopped down and sighed as Gwyn started digging around in a bag. "I meant what I said about killing you. Don't you dare breathe a word of this to anyone."

"Don't worry, it's definitely amusing enough even when I'm the only one who knows." She brushed his blond hair away from his forehead and poured some flesh-colored liquid onto a white sponge. Dabbing gently, she applied a layer over the cursed pimple. "Stop moving your face," she snapped as he wrinkled his nose at the thought of what was going on. Satisfied that she had covered it up as best she could, she brushed some loose powder over it with a large brush, finishing up her work. "Whatever you do, don't touch it."

He nodded. "Thanks, Gwyn," he said sincerely.

"Yeah, well I figured you'd need all the help you can get for your date tonight."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence."

"No problem. Are you sure you don't want some blush or eyeliner while I have my makeup bag out?"

"Shut up." Running away from her pink compact, he quickly exited the room.

Kara arrived right on schedule, driving her mother's car. Adan gave her a quick hug before getting into the passenger seat and buckling his seatbelt. Never had he been so glad for a car's safety features, as Kara seemed to think that the signs beside the road proclaiming the speed limit were merely offering suggestions. As the car raced down the street and skidded around the curves, he clutched the door and braced his feet on the floor as he was bounced around violently.

Adan was still shaking by the time he got to school on Monday morning. Immediately upon seeing him, Crys was concerned. "What's wrong with you?" he asked.

"Oh man. _Never_ get into a car that Kara is driving. I thought I was going to die."

Crys laughed. "It couldn't have been that bad."

"You have no idea. I'm just glad we didn't get a chance to see if the airbags worked."

"Other than your wild ride, how was the rest of your night?"

Adan shook his head. "First, she took me paintballing."

"That's cool."

"Those things fucking hurt! I think she was enjoying shooting at me."

"It couldn't have been that bad."

Adan rolled up his sleeves and showed his friend his bruise-covered arms. "Do I need to remove the rest of my clothing to prove my point?"

"Please don't."

"Once she was done kicking my ass, she took me to some party in this weird guy's basement. We could barely get down there, the place was packed with people."

"What were they doing?"

"I think they were supposed to be dancing, I'm not quite sure. To me, it just looked and felt like the mass of people was jumping up and down and occasionally elbowing others in the face. The music was really loud and it sort of smelled bad in there."

Adan's narrative was interrupted by two green-haired girls rushing towards them. His Kara grabbed his head and gave him a rough kiss on the cheek, while the other Kara just smiled and blushed. Both of them waved before continuing on their way.

"I don't know if I can handle going out with her again," Adan whispered, his eyes wide. "She's kind of crazy."

Crys shrugged his shoulders. "It does sound sort of exciting. At least you actually _did_ something on your date."

"What, things didn't go well with Kara?"

"Eh. We went out to dinner and talked and stuff, but..."

"What is it?"

Crys scratched his head. "I don't know, she's just...too nice."

"And that's a problem?"

"She's really sweet and polite and she actually knew which fork to use first at the restaurant. She even offered to help me with my math homework the next time I don't understand it, as long as it's not the same day she's volunteering to read stories to the kids at the elementary school. Compared to her, I just felt like the world's biggest asshole."

"Well..."

"Yeah, I know, it's not entirely inaccurate," Crys joked before a frown appeared on his face. "I don't know if it'll work out between us."

"Why not? She sounds a hell of a lot saner than her sister."

"Probably. To be honest, though, I kind of felt a little bored when I was out with her."

Adan sighed. "Where did we go wrong?"

"Beats me."

"We probably would have been better off switching places on Saturday night." Adan hadn't been serious, but his words lingered in the air. He slowly turned to Crys and raised his eyebrows, asking a silent question.

"No way. It'll never work," Crys said.

"Why not? They seem like reasonable girls. We'll just explain to them that we think that each of us is better suited for the one we _didn't_ go out with this weekend."

"And you think they'll understand?"

"They must have seen that we weren't having a good time with them. We'd be doing all of us a favor."

"Hmm." Crys stroked his chin in thought. "It's worth a shot."

"Ask Kara to meet you here after school. We'll make our case together."

"Okay."

Adan considered their plan and what, precisely, he was going to say for the rest of the school day. When the final bell rang, he found Kara by her locker and invited her outside with him. As they approached the gates to the school, he saw that her sister was already waiting there with Crys.

"What's going on?" the taller Kara asked.

"We need to talk to both of you," Adan started. "Crys and I were discussing what happened the other night. While we both had a really good time," he lied, "we think we might have made a mistake."

"A mistake?" the other Kara repeated, glaring at the two of them.

"Not really a mistake, but..." Crys nervously ran his hands through his wavy hair and tried to think of the right words. "We just think that we'd all be happier if we, you know...switched."

"Oh really?" his former date asked in a sharp tone that he had never expected from her.

"Look, you're both great girls," Adan jumped in, hoping to smooth things over. He turned to the dark-eyed Kara, who was still shooting daggers at both of them. "I had a nice time the other night, but I don't think I'd be able to keep up with you. Crys, on the other hand, thought that your ideas for our date sounded like fun."

Crys addressed her sister. "And I liked talking to you, but I don't think you want to be with someone like me. Adan's a really nice guy, though."

Having finished presenting their arguments, the two friends looked at the girls expectantly. "So what do you think?" Adan asked.

The sisters looked at each other and seemed to have a brief, wordless conversation. After slightly nodding their heads, they turned to the boys and, in eerily identical motions, slapped them in the face. Without speaking another word, they stormed off, leaving the stunned Adan and Crys behind.

"Well, _that_ didn't go as planned," Crys said.

"No, not at all." Adan rubbed his stinging cheek. "Crys?"

"Yeah?"

"We're idiots. You know that, right?"

"Yes. Yes, we are."


	6. The Allure of the Darkness

#6 – The Allure of the Darkness

Part One

Sean tightly clutched his hall pass as he pushed open the heavy wooden door. He wordlessly handed it to the secretary at the desk, who directed him to sit in a row of empty chairs. As he slouched down in his seat, some of his long green hair flopped over his eyes; he didn't bother to brush it out of the way as he didn't really want a visual reminder of the place he didn't want to be in.

He wasn't sure how much time had passed before he heard a pleasant voice calling his name. Miss Mieu, the school's beloved guidance counselor, greeted him with a serene smile and led him into her office. Having been in there several times before, he took his usual seat and waited for her to sit down across from him and take out her notebook.

"Hello Sean. How are you today?" she asked gently.

He sighed. "Fine, I guess, but I don't know why I'm here."

She frowned. "Some of your teachers are worried about you. I just want to make sure everything is okay."

"I don't know why they always think something's wrong with me."

"Well, we usually don't see you socializing with the other students and - "

"So?" he interrupted. "I like being alone, what's wrong with that?"

Her frown only deepened as a concerned look came into her bright, unblinking blue eyes. "Everyone needs friends, Sean," she said softly. "It's not healthy to keep everything to yourself all the time."

He glared at her, though she wasn't the direct object of his annoyance. "Almost everyone in this school is a total dumbass," he stated. "So many of them say stupid things about me – about the way I wear my hair, my choice of clothes, the music I listen to, the books I read. They think they know me, but they don't, and I'm not going to waste my time trying to prove myself so people so stupid."

Miss Mieu leaned back in her chair and for a fleeting moment, the teenager thought he saw a brief hint of amusement flash across her face. "You're right," she said.

"I am?"

"I don't know if I would have used the phrase 'total dumbass', as it's a little harsh, but you do make valid points. It's foolish to judge people based solely on how they outwardly appear, but unfortunately, it happens all the time in high school. Well, maybe a little beyond high school as well, but it's not so bad." She smiled again. "It does get better."

"I hope so. If the rest of life is going to be like high school, I might as well call it quits now."

"See, now that way of thinking is probably what got you sent down here in the first place." She folded her hands in her lap and stared directly at the green-haired student, her gaze never wavering. "Anyone who tells you that these are the 'best years of your life' is wrong, that's bullshit."

He looked at her in surprise and she chuckled. "Don't look so shocked. What, did you think I was some kind of robot?"

Sean finally managed a tiny smile. "I guess coming down here wasn't all that bad," he admitted to the caring guidance counselor.

"Gee, thanks. So much for my reputation." Miss Mieu took a pad of hall passes out of her desk drawer and began to fill out the top sheet. As her pen moved across the page, she returned to her usual serious manner. "If you ever do want to talk to someone, though, my door is always open to you."

"Thank you." He took the slip of paper from her and headed back to class.

Sean had to admit that he did feel slightly better after his meeting with Miss Mieu. He still had no desire to make friends with his fellow high school classmates, however. The following morning, as all the students started gradually arriving at the campus, Sean slipped into the empty building. His prior attempts to find a quiet place outside where he could do some reading or writing or zoning out to his headphones only resulted in ridicule from those around him, so he preferred to hide out in various places inside the school until it was time to report to his homeroom. He rotated between a few favorite secluded spots; this morning, he snuck into the little-known stairwell that led to the basement of the school, deep underground beneath the swimming pool in the gymnasium.

It was dark, dreary and musty down there, just the way he liked it. He flicked on his cell phone to light the way and was about to plug in his earbuds when he heard a noise coming from several feet away from him. It was too loud to be a rat and when Sean stopped to listen more closely, he could hear the sound of someone breathing.

"Hello?" he called into the darkness.

He was instantly answered by a scream. "Who...who's there?" asked a soft, feminine voice.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you." Using the screen of his phone to illuminate his path, he maneuvered around a stack of boxes and found a small, blonde girl sitting on the floor with her knees pulled to her chest, glowing in the blue light coming from his hand. He thought she looked vaguely familiar from some of his classes, but he generally didn't bother to learn the names of his classmates. Upon closer inspection, he could tell that she'd been crying.

"What are you doing down here?" she inquired.

"I could ask you the same thing." Her mysteriously dark brown eyes were staring intently at him and somehow, Sean knew that he would need to answer first. "I come down here sometimes in the mornings, I like to be alone before school starts."

"Sorry I ruined that for you," she spat out.

"Don't worry about it." He scratched his head, wondering how to proceed with this awkward moment. "Are you, uh, okay? You look kind of upset."

She blinked several times as she decided whether or not she wanted to answer him. With a dramatic sigh, she finally responded. "It's nothing. It's just that my sister is _ruining_ my entire _life_!"

Sean didn't have any siblings, but he figured he might as well try to offer a friendly ear to the distressed girl. "How is she ruining your life?"

"Everything's always about her! Laya's so pretty, Laya's so smart, Laya's so popular. Everyone in this school seems to worship her!" Sean recalled having heard about this Laya before and couldn't argue with the description, but he stayed silent as the girl went on. "No matter what I do, I'll never live up to her! I'm always being compared to her and it's not fair!"

"You're right, that doesn't sound fair." He fidgeted a bit as she looked at him curiously. "I don't really know her that well, so I'm probably in no position to judge, but you seem all right to me."

Her lips gradually curved into a tiny smile. "Thanks."

Sean extended his hand and pulled her to her feet. "I'm sorry," he said, "but I don't think I remember your name."

"It's Laya."

"Laya? But I thought your sister..."

The smile disappeared. "I know, right? Apparently she was just so wonderful, my parents freaking named me after her. It's just the first on a long list of similar injustices."

"I could call you something else if you'd like..."

"No, it's okay, it's the only name I've ever known."

"Laya it is, then. I'm Sean."

She studied him in the dim light. "I think we're in the same math class."

"Probably."

"You're that quiet guy who sits in the back of the room."

Now it was Sean's turn to sigh. "Yeah, that's me."

"Maybe I'll join you there today."

The green-haired boy was bewildered by the idea that someone actually wanted to sit near him in class. "Whatever you'd like."

"I might need help anyway." He could see her wrinkle her nose as they moved towards the stairwell. "Unfortunately, I don't seem to be as smart as my sister."

"I'm sure that's not true."

Fourth period math inevitably rolled around and as promised, Laya took a seat next to Sean in the back of the room. The lecture left little time for conversation, but the pair was surprised to find themselves each walking in the same direction following class. "You have lunch this period?" Sean asked.

She nodded. "You too? I've never seen you in the cafeteria before."

"I usually go eat in the library or the courtyard when it's warm enough outside."

"That sounds nice. Let me grab my food and I'll meet you out there."

He continued to be perplexed by her actions. "Don't you have friends you'd rather eat with?"

"My friends don't have lunch at the same time as me this year," she explained with a slight shrug of her shoulders. "And while my sister 'graciously' allows me to sit at her table with her entourage, I'm getting a little tired of it."

Sean hated to admit it, but he found himself enjoying his classmate's company. Laya asked him about the book he'd planned on reading and shared that she, too, preferred losing herself in literature instead of the technological distractions that were the top choice of so many of their fellow students. After a friendly discussion about their favorite music and movies, the pair had exchanged screen names so they could continue the conversation even after school ended for the day.

That evening, Sean added her name to his list of virtual companions from around the world and was pleased to see her online. He initially worried about immediately striking up a conversation with her, afraid of seeming too eager, but as she had initiated most of their contact that day, he took a deep breath and sent her a message.

_AzuraSkies: Hi_

_IcePrincess3: Hi :)_

The response had been nearly instantaneous, as if she'd been waiting for him. Sean let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding as he tried to think of what to say first. Unlike the other people he chatted with, he'd actually have to see her face-to-face the following day and he was a bit nervous.

_AzuraSkies: I'm glad you ate lunch with me today. _

_IcePrincess3: it was fun, we should do it again sometime!_

_AzuraSkies: definitely :)_

_IcePrincess3: you're a hell of a lot more fun than my sister, that's for sure_

_AzuraSkies: you're a lot better than...well, nobody. I really liked talking to you._

Sean cringed as he hoped that his last line didn't reek of desperation too badly. The next line to pop up on his computer screen helped reassure him that his worries were unfounded.

_IcePrincess3: so we talked about books, we talked about music, what else do you want to talk about today?_

_AzuraSkies: hmmm_

_AzuraSkies: what about poetry?_

_IcePrincess3: I guess it's alright. I really haven't read that much_

_AzuraSkies: sometimes I write my own, I have several notebooks filled_

Upon realizing what he had accidentally revealed to this girl he had just met, Sean slumped against the desk, making sure to avoid the keyboard. He had visions of his classmates finding yet another thing to tease him about and prayed that none of his work would ever be discovered by then. As always, though, Laya was full of surprises.

_IcePrincess3: that's cool. you'll have to let me read some sometime_

One moment of panic was quickly replaced by a different one as Sean tried to think of a valid response. He considered himself to be intelligent and thought he had a good way with words, but the attentions of the pretty blonde were scattering his thoughts like nothing he had come across before.

_AzuraSkies: I don't know, they're kind of depressing_

_IcePrincess3: that's okay, I don't mind_

_AzuraSkies: I wouldn't want to make you sad_

_IcePrincess3: Aw :)_

Things had been going well so far, so Sean took a deep breath before leaping far outside his comfort zone.

_AzuraSkies: there's going to be a poetry reading at a coffeehouse in Dahlia this Friday, I was thinking of going_

_AzuraSkies: you're welcome to join me if you're not doing anything else that night_

_IcePrincess3: sure, it sounds like fun!_

Sean blinked silently as he read her response. He'd actually made plans with a classmate to do something outside of school. There was actually someone who didn't find him to be "weird" and wanted to spend time with him. This was an entirely new situation for him and he wasn't quite sure how he felt. His last thought before saying goodnight to Laya and turning the computer off was about how he hoped he wasn't going to screw anything up.

* * *

Part Two

Though Laya never got to eat lunch with her own friends, she was lucky enough to share a study hall with her best friend, Kara. The two girls got along well not only due to their similar temperaments, but because each knew the frustrations that came from sharing a name with a sister and they were able to bond over their misfortune. Though some used the study hall time to actually study, Laya took this opportunity to quietly share some information with her friend.

"So I, uh, think I have a date tomorrow night," she confessed.

Kara put her pencil down and turned her bright blue, inquisitive eyes towards her companion as she pushed her wavy, lime-green hair behind her ears. "You think?"

"Okay, fine. I have a date tomorrow night."

"Really? With whom?"

"You know how I told you I've been talking to that guy Sean a lot this week?"

"The quiet one with the dark clothes and long hair?"

"Yeah, him. We were talking and he mentioned something about a poetry reading and asked if I wanted to go."

"I didn't know you were that into poetry," Kara gently teased.

"I thought it sounded interesting. Besides, I like him. He's one of the first guys I've met who wouldn't rather hang around my sister."

"I understand," said Kara.

Laya knew she would. "It should be fun. Or at least I hope it would be."

Kara noticed the slight frown that had crept onto her friend's face. "What's wrong? Are you nervous about going with him?"

The blonde-haired girl shook her head. "No, it's not that." She paused as she considered how much she wanted to tell Kara. "He showed me one of his notebooks with his own poems yesterday. They were really good, he writes so vividly. It's just that some of them were..."

"Were what?"

"A little creepy," Laya admitted. "There was a lot of blood and pain and violent torture. All described very well, of course, but it kind of caught me off guard."

"Ew," was Kara's initial reaction. "Are you sure he's not going to cut you up in a bunch of little pieces afterward and spread your remains around town?"

"No! He's not like that! And, by the way - _gross_!" Laya wasn't sure why she was so offended on behalf of her future date. "He's a nice guy! I really like talking to him! I just didn't know he...thought those things, I guess."

"Well, what were you expecting when you read his notebook? Poems about rainbows and fluffy bunnies?"

"I guess you have a point." Laya sighed and started playing with the ends of her long hair, a nervous habit that surfaced from time to time. "He's just so different from the other guys I know." She felt the blood rushing to her face and was sure her skin was bright red as she tried to conceal the smile that was creeping onto her lips. "But I think I like that," she whispered.

Kara raised a bright green eyebrow. "Whatever makes you happy." Realizing that she probably didn't sound that excited for her friend, she patted her on the shoulder and gave her a genuine grin. "I'm glad you're going out with him, you seem to really like him and I'm sure you'll have a great time."

"Thanks. If you don't hear from me on Saturday, assume I'm scattered all over the place in tiny little pieces."

Sean picked her up right on time on Friday night and Laya found herself relaxing during the ride to Dahlia as they eased back into their friendly conversations. At the coffeehouse, he ordered two cappuccinos and found a cozy-looking couch for them in a dark corner. Laya initially wasn't sure how close to him she should get, but as the evening progressed, she found herself leaning into him, especially when someone was reading about love.

She had just found a comfortable spot nestled against him when, to her surprise, she heard his name being called. Flashing her a rare smile, he got up to stand in the front of the room, his wild green hair illuminated by the colored lamps hanging from the ceiling. He pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket, unfolded it, and cleared his throat.

Laya bit her lower lip as she sat frozen in the corner of the room. She braced herself for the inevitable gory descriptions of pain and death that had been the recurring themes in the poems of his she had previously read. The words that came out of his mouth, however, completely astounded her.

"_Alone in the desert I walked_

_The only living being around for miles_

_and miles_

_and miles_

_The prince of nothingness, the ruler of the dust_

_The lord of the empty black hole_

_The gaping abyss that threatened to _

_Consume my humanity_

_The oasis of love beckoned to me from the sands and I_

_Flung myself into its spiraling whirlpool_

_The waves of life crashed over my body_

_Caressing my skin with their icy blue embrace_

_I allowed myself to sink to the bottom_

_Staring through the crystal waters I saw_

_The golden-haired goddess awaiting my arrival_

_Reaching out to me_

_Engaging me_

_Ready to rule beside me_

_Saving each other from ourselves, we would_

_Fight together against the raging storms_

_The evils that sought to oppress us_

_United, with our words of power_

_We could vanquish the dark beasts_

_And turn our domain into a world of magnificent beauty_

_Rivaled only by the brilliance_

_Of the shining face of my goddess_

_For she alone can reach into the depths of my soul_

_Heal me with her touch_

_Show me the truth_

_Fill my heart with the wonder that I never knew until I first_

_Gazed into the glowing stars that were reflected in her_

_Dark brown eyes that saw me for who I really was._"

The poem seemed to be well-received by the other patrons of the coffeehouse, but Sean only had eyes for Laya as he made his way back to his seat. "So what did you think?" he shyly asked.

She stared back at him. "Wow," was all she finally managed to get out.

"I know it's a lot different from the other poems I showed you. But..." He scratched his head and looked away from her. "I wrote it for you," he said, confessing the obvious.

Laya felt herself blushing furiously and was glad for the poor lighting in their corner of the room. "No one's ever done anything like that for me before," she told him. Before she could logically think things through, she leaned over and quickly kissed him on the cheek.

His face rapidly turned the same color as hers. "Does that mean you liked it?"

She giggled at him, something she rarely did. "I loved it."

Sean slid his arm around Laya's shoulders and she turned her face up towards his expectantly. Tucked away in their dark corner, their lips found each other as their fingers intertwined and his grasp on her tightened. From that moment onwards, they knew they would be inseparable as Sean had found someone worthy of spending his time with and Laya had finally managed to escape the shadows of her sister.


	7. The Absence of Definition

There was a student named Aron. Nobody cared.


	8. The Thrill of Discovery

Ayn cursed to himself as he threw down his wrench, letting it clank on the pavement beneath his rusty car. Despite his best efforts to keep it working condition, the Escapipe simply refused to start this afternoon and he was growing frustrated. He and Thea had made plans to meet Nial and Alair at a fair in the next town over, but as Thea had to perform her cheerleading duties at the school's football game that morning, the other couple had gone on ahead. Unfortunately, that left the blue-haired boy stranded in his driveway.

He gave the front tire a swift kick before pulling out his cell phone and dialing his girlfriend. "Hi, Thea," he greeted her when she answered his call.

"Hi!" Thea was bubbly as always.

"I know I'm supposed to be picking you up soon, but my car won't start." He sighed. "Nial and Alair are probably too far away by now, so I guess we can't meet them at the fair."

"Aww..." He could practically see her pout over the phone.

"I'm sorry, I know you really wanted to go."

Thea paused. "I can always ask my father if he could give us a ride," she suggested.

Ayn tried to stifle his groan, as he usually went out of his way to avoid Thea's intimidating father. Still, he hated to disappoint her. "Do you really think he'll agree? Techna is kinda far away."

"I'm sure I can talk him into it!" she giggled. "We'll be over in about ten minutes to pick you up!"

Sure enough, Thea and Lyle pulled up in the latter's sleek, golden car right on schedule. Ayn opened the door to the backseat and slid inside, offering his profuse thanks for the ride to the fair. Lyle said nothing, but merely focused his one green eye on the new passenger via the rearview mirror for several moments before taking off.

The two men remained mostly silent for most of the trip as Thea chattered on about that morning's football game, which their school's team had actually won for a change. The opposing team, the Giants, had had a better record coming in, but their star player had been kicked out early on, much to the surprise of the spectators. The large, muscular boy had disagreed with a call and had yelled at the referee, menacingly wagging his finger in the man's face and threatening him. He was promptly banned for the rest of the game and P.S. 3's team had managed to prevail and achieve victory over the ominous Giants.

With a car that was actually able to reach and maintain posted speed limits, it didn't take as long as Ayn had expected for them to reach the narrow strip of land that was the only way to reach the town of Techna. As they traveled down Cape Dragon Spine to the bridge that would take them over to the site of the fair, he was glad that Lyle had offered to drive, as he didn't know if they would have made it without him. The older man pulled into the parking lot to drop them off and continued to glare at Ayn. Trying to brush it off, the two teenagers thanked him again for taking the time to drive them; he simply bid farewell to Thea before disappearing into the traffic. Ayn texted Nial and it wasn't long before the friends were able to find each other. "Sorry we're a little late," he apologized.

"Don't worry about it," Alair assured him. "We ran into Lune and some of his friends, we were talking to them while we waited for you."

Ayn raised an eyebrow at Nial, but his best friend remained silent. Lune had begrudgingly allowed Nial to date his sister after they had fought after school one day, but though they tried to be civil towards each other for Alair's sake, it was silly to think that they would ever be good friends. However, the fair was quite large and it would be easy for them to keep their distance.

They strolled around the grounds, stopping at anything that caught their interest. There were rides, games, exhibits, and all sorts of food available, and at times, it was hard to decide how best to spend their day. Thea clung to Ayn and giggled as they sped along the track of a small roller coaster, while Alair and Nial chose to ride a carousel filled with all sorts of different animals, such as strangely-colored lizards and large-antlered moose.

Glad to have his feet back on solid ground, Ayn led the way to a series of games. Despite Nial's taunting, he managed to knock over an entire row of robot-shaped pins with one throw of a beanbag and won a prize for his beloved. Thea squealed with delight as she accepted the bright yellow stuffed bird; it somewhat resembled a cross between a chicken and a duck, but curiously enough, it had red-tipped antennae and a rather annoyed facial expression. Even though it looked vaguely sinister, the emerald-haired girl cuddled it lovingly and expressed her gratitude towards her boyfriend with a heartfelt kiss.

Alair spotted a haunted house at the edge of the fairgrounds and convinced the others to enter with her. It was damp and dimly-lit inside and all sorts of props and dead ends that would have seemed harmless in the light of day seemed especially eerie. The two boys tried to maintain their composure as they led the way through the large building, not wanting to appear frightened in front of their female companions. Ferocious giants wielding swords lurked around every corner and grotesque bat/wolf hybrids hung from the ceiling. Distorted faces seemed to appear in midair and nearly every noise startled the group.

As it was hard to see much of anything inside, the foursome soon discovered they were lost. They struggled not to bump into things as they tried to find a path to the exit, but each member of the party had a different opinion on which was the correct way to go. As they argued and debated, each of them gradually got the feeling that they were not alone in the room, almost as if they were being watched. Nial motioned for them to be silent and they listened to the haunting emptiness of their surroundings.

He took a few cautious steps forward, squinting into the darkness, with his friends close behind. All of a sudden, a tall figure sprung out at them from behind a corner, laughing maniacally! Thea screamed and squeezed her plush bird, causing its eyes to bug out slightly and appear even more peevish, while the others scrambled to get away from the shadowy stranger. "My, my, bickering amongst ourselves, eh?" it said in a deep voice.

Alair groaned audibly. "Lune, that wasn't funny!" she complained. Her brother merely continued laughing as he vanished back into the blackness. Nial shook his head, wondering if Lune would ever leave the two of them alone, before leading the group in the opposite direction.

Daylight was a welcome sight once they were out of the cave-like depths of the haunted house. "Let's get out of here," Nial suggested and started walking towards the southeast. No one argued with him.

They traveled back across the fairgrounds, occasionally stopping at displays that caught their attention or to get some snacks. Strange mechanical signs with arms and legs displayed arrows pointing in various directions, but as there were no other markings on them, Ayn found them to be utterly useless. A secluded path flanked by odd looking disks bearing more arrows led them to a old man offering rides in a hot-air balloon. "You are the first of your people to visit us," he greeted them.

Ayn wasn't sure what people he was talking about, but assumed that the balloon had gone unnoticed by the teenaged crowd in search of bigger thrills. The girls turned to their dates expectantly. "That looks like fun, can we go?" Thea eagerly asked.

"Yeah, let's do it!" Alair chimed in.

Nial was still feeling a bit jumpy from their trip through the haunted house and he wasn't sure if he wanted to go flying through the air in something that seemed so unsteady, but the man assured them that it was perfectly safe. Besides, Alair seemed eager to take to the skies and he would have hated to disappoint her. Ayn offered no opinion on the matter, so after paying the man, they all entered the small vessel.

They took off into the air and were soon soaring high above the trees. It wasn't long before the people below them were no more than tiny specks and they could see the entirety of the fairgrounds. Ayn wrapped his arms around Thea and her plushie and contentedly rested his chin on top of her head as Alair squeezed Nial's hand and beamed at him.

The balloon slowly drifted over the water in the direction of their home and they made a game out of spotting all the landmarks they had passed on their way to the fair. Alair's house came into view first and they marveled at how different all the streets and neighborhoods looked from their new viewpoint. It took them a little while to gather their bearings, but they were soon able to find all the significant places in their lives with ease.

Nial was the first to locate their school in the distance and his jaw dropped open in shock. "That's what our school really looks like?" he exclaimed. "It's shaped like a spaceship! But who built it?"

"That is sort of weird," Ayn remarked. "How could we have gone this long without knowing something like that?"

Alair agreed. "I know! It seems like someone should have told us about this before!"

The old man stood in the far corner of the basket, counting his money. "You have earned the right to know the truth," he mumbled, but no one paid any attention to him.

They floated peacefully through the air until it was time to turn back. As they made their way back to the fair, the sun was beginning to set and the orange-streaked clouds provided the perfect backdrop to the end of their lovely day. Ayn continued to hold Thea close, glad that he had a girlfriend who meant so much to him and enjoyed spending time with him...and glad that he didn't have to worry about dealing with her father for the rest of the evening.


	9. The Myth of Closure

Rhys mentally willed himself not to look down as he balanced precariously on the roof of his house. Slowly and carefully, he crawled along, gripping the shingles tightly, until he reached the malfunctioning weather system. Truth be told, he couldn't care less about the weather, but it was something of a hobby for others in his family and as the eldest son, he had been nominated to climb up and find out what was wrong with it. The sun blazed above him, making him that much more sweaty and miserable, but he didn't have much of a choice. Grumbling to himself about the misfortune of being saddled with the responsibility, he inched closer until it was finally within reach.

Upon examining it, he found that the weather station was infested with lizards. Cursing his bad luck even further, he swatted the reptilian pests away until he was sure they were gone, all while trying to maintain his safety. He nearly toppled off the roof when he heard someone calling his name, but he managed to stay upright.

"Rhys!"

Even from his position high above her, Rhys could tell that his girlfriend Maia, who was usually the picture of poise and serenity, was excited about something as she frantically waved at him to further alert him of her presence. "I'll be right down!" he yelled back. Scooting back in the direction from which he'd come, he returned to the ladder propped up against the side of the house and descended back onto solid ground.

Maia was literally bouncing up and down in the driveway in anticipation of greeting her boyfriend. "Hey, what's going on?" he asked her after kissing her on the cheek. She clasped her hands over her mouth and shook her head. "Is something wrong?"

She furtively looked around to make sure no one was within earshot. "...I can't say it!" she whispered before covering her mouth again.

Rhys was running low on patience due to the lizards and the heat and he wasn't feeling up for the silly games that teenaged girls sometimes played, but he knew he had to try to coax it out of her, whatever "it" was. "Did something happen when you were at the mall this morning?"

She nodded, her pale blue hair bobbing up and down furiously. Rhys attempted to narrow it down further. "Okay...um...did you lose your phone again?"

Maia's eyes grew wide and she quickly checked inside her purse before breathing a sigh of relief. "I can never remember where I put that damn thing," she mumbled. "No, that's not it."

He resisted the urge to roll his eyes and tried to decide on his best course of action for getting to the point as quickly as possible. "Is there a problem with one of your friends?"

"Oh, I'll just tell you!" she burst out. _Thank goodness_, Rhys thought. "So we had just gotten to the mall and I really wanted to go try on these shoes, but the first store didn't have them in my size, but then I remembered that I saw similar ones in a different store, but it was all the way on the other side of the mall! So we were walking over there and then I stepped in some gum, which was really gross, and we had to stop at the food court so I could scrape it off and..."

The young man patiently listened to the tale of Maia's shopping trip, which had seemingly taken them through every single store in the entire complex, and hoped that she wouldn't quiz him for details at the end. He tried to nod and make non-committal noises in all the right spots as he pondered which items were going to actually be relevant to whatever had gotten her so worked up when she'd arrived. Part of him wondered if there was an actual point to her ramblings and if it would be something he would care about, but he let her continue on uninterrupted.

"...and I thought the belt was, like, really pretty, it had all these seashells on it, but then they told me that I'd look silly, like I'd just come from the beach or something, so I put it back and decided to think about it some more. _Anyway_, we left that store, and that's when we saw them!"

"'Them'?"

"A group of girls from another school, I've seen them around at baseball games and stuff. My friend was wearing her boyfriend's varsity jacket and they saw us and waved us over and oh my god, you'll never believe what they told us!" Maia had started to bounce again, as if her body was physically unable to contain the words much longer.

"What?"

"I don't know if I should tell you, this is big. Really big. Huge!"

"What is it?"

"It is just gossip and rumors, after all, but they seemed pretty sure, and it would be really mean if they were saying these things and they weren't true and..."

"_Maia_! Just tell me already!"

His outburst seemed to stun her just slightly. She blinked several times and frowned, but made a quick recovery before he could make his request yet again. "Lena's pregnant!" she exclaimed.

Rhys' jaw nearly hit the graveled blacktop of his driveway. "Le...she..._what_?" he sputtered.

"I know, isn't that just crazy?" Though Maia bore no ill feelings towards her boyfriend's ex-girlfriend, there was still a hint of a satisfied gleam in her eyes in regards to the other girl's unfortunate predicament.

"But...who?" Rhys was still having difficulty stringing together coherent sentences.

"Apparently she's been seeing some guy in their town. The name didn't sound familiar, I don't remember." She couldn't help but giggle slightly. "It's going to be _all_ over school by Monday morning. I mean, I've only told you, I don't want to be a gossip...but _everybody's_ going to know!"

Even though he had plans with Maia for the rest of the day, the news about Lena lingered in the back of Rhys' mind. Though he had been the one to break things off with her in order to pursue Maia, she had been so upset, he hadn't expected her to start dating someone else so quickly. And not only had she already moved on, she had apparently grown to know this new suitor quite intimately, if the rumors were to be believed.

After a rather sleepless night, he still couldn't shake the thoughts of his former girlfriend. They hadn't spoken since their break-up, but he knew he needed to talk to her himself and find out what was going on. Preferring to hold this sensitive conversation face-to-face (and not wanting to run the risk of her ignoring his calls when his name popped up on her phone), he set out on foot for her house.

The petite brunette was sitting on her front porch reading a book when she heard the curious teenager approach. Her eyes narrowed as she looked him over and they stared at each other in awkward silence for several moments. "Hi," he finally said, opting for simplicity.

"Can I help you?" she curtly asked.

"I...uh..." He scratched his head. "I just wanted to see how you were."

"How nice of you to care." Lena marked her place in her novel before setting it aside and crossing her arms across her chest, raising an irritated eyebrow at her visitor.

"Aw, Lena, you know I'll always care about you. We - "

"Oh, please, don't even start in with that bullshit. You got bored with me and unceremoniously dumped me out of nowhere to go chase after that blue-haired skank and now you've heard some rumors and you came by to see if you could learn anything for yourself. It's so nice to see that you haven't become any less of an asshole in the months since we broke up."

Rhys couldn't come up with much of a response, as nothing in her brief tirade had been untrue. She had seen right through him and there was no use in trying to convince her that his motives were pure. With few choices available to him, he opted for blunt honesty. "So is it true?"

Her seething glare never wavered. "Is that really any of your damn business?"

He tried to think of a good answer. "Well, we were together for a really long time. You know who I'm dating now. I don't get to know anything about you and your 'mystery man'?"

"No, you don't. You lost the right to know anything about me when you cast me aside like yesterday's trash." She smirked at him. "Though I have to admit, it is a little entertaining that you came all the way out here when you found out that I wasn't holed up in my bedroom, pining away for our lost love. There are other men in the world, Rhys, and a lot of them are willing to treat me a hell of a lot better than you ever did."

Rhys was starting to wonder why he'd made the trip out if she was just going to berate him, but he was determined not to leave uninformed. Though she'd previously cut him off, he tried to appeal to her sentimental side and remind her of their history together. "Come on, Lena. We've known each other for our entire lives. I know I fucked up and I'm sorry, but I really do want you to be happy. If you really love this new guy, I'm happy for you, even if..." He gulped, as the next words were difficult to get out. "...you're having his baby."

"It's more than a little late, but I accept your apology." Her expression softened slightly, but not much as she kept her cold brown eyes fixed on him. "I know there's no use in trying to hide it much longer, so I may as well tell you: yes, I'm pregnant. Satisfied?"

Rhys didn't really know what he was feeling, but hearing the words come from her didn't give him the closure he'd been seeking. "Um...I guess." He shifted his weight and looked everywhere but at her. "So...uh...how'd that happen anyway?"

Lena rolled her eyes. "The usual way? Or did you cut health class the day they went over the mechanics of it?"

"You know what I meant."

She shrugged. "Accidents happen. We thought we were being careful, but nothing's one hundred percent effective, you know."

"I know." He was still fidgeting, as it wasn't the most comfortable conversation a teenaged boy could be having with his ex-girlfriend, but there was still so much he wanted to know. "What are you going to do with it?"

"We're keeping the baby. It's not the most ideal situation, of course, but everyone's been really supportive and we'll work it out somehow."

"Well, good luck with all of that."

"I'll be just fine. Not that you expressed much of an interest before now, but you don't have to worry about me." He started to say something, but Lena put up a hand to stop him. "You and Maia will go off to college in the fall, you'll start the next part of your lives in a whole new place, and I'm sure you won't even give me a second thought after we graduate in a few months." She crossed her arms again. "Anything else? Or are we done?"

Rhys nodded a silent farewell and descended the steps. He hadn't traveled more than several yards before he turned around and returned to Lena's porch. "There _is_ something else."

"What?"

He looked down at his feet, unable to meet her inquisitive stare. "When we were together, all that time...you never wanted to...you know..."

"_What_?" His eyes flicked up to hers and he blushed slightly. She let out an exasperated sigh. "Are you talking about sex? You can say it, we're not kids anymore."

He stared at her for a moment longer, trying to find the least embarrassing way to ask his question, but he had a feeling that nothing was ever going to sound especially eloquent. "Why him and not me?"

He'd half-expected her to laugh at him, but she just returned his curious gaze as she considered the question. "I don't know. Lots of reasons."

"It just seems like you moved on awfully quickly. What's so special about him anyway?"

The snort of laughter he'd been expecting finally came. "It's almost reassuring to know that you'll never change, Rhys."

"Hey! I've been open and honest with you this whole time! Just tell me and I'll leave and I'll never speak to you again if that's what you really want."

Lena thought carefully before she spoke again. "I loved you so much when we were dating and there was a time when I thought I'd do just about anything for you, anything to keep you with me. But deep down, I think I knew that you were always far more important to me than I was to you and even though I was devastated when you dumped me, I'm glad we broke up before I did anything I would have regretted."

"And this new guy?"

"We love each other, that much should be obvious; it's not like I went out and slept with the whole football team after we broke up," she spat out. "If I had to pick one thing, though, I guess I would have to say that I trust him more than I ever trusted you. I trust him not to go out and do something stupid in a fit of testosterone-induced rage, I trust him not to leave me behind for the next pretty girl who walks by, and even though he's not perfect, I trust in our future together. You could never give me any of that."

Rhys still couldn't argue with anything she was saying, as much as he didn't like hearing the truth. The new information didn't make him feel much better, but he knew that their conversation had reached its conclusion. He said good-bye to Lena once more and left, this time making it to the end of her street and beyond. She was right in her assessment that the two of them would soon no longer have a place in each other's lives, as they would shortly be going their separate ways; he felt a little sad when thinking about losing the connection to someone who had been important to him for a long period of time, but as he contemplated their exchanges during his walk home, he realized that growing apart was sometimes just another part of growing up.


End file.
